George Osborne announced that a pint of beer will be 1p less from today as he confirmed a range of price cuts to help protect jobs of people working in pubs and drinks makers.

Despite alcohol duties rising, Scottish Whisky makers have seen duties frozen for them, and the price of cider will also be frozen to compensate for the onslaught of rain and floods that have hit drinks-makers in the south-west.

The move was welcomed by the drinks industry, who claimed that taxes on British beer had got "too high".

Brigid Simmonds, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, said: "This is fantastic news, and George Osborne is again the toast of Britain's brewers, pubs and pubgoers.

CUT: Enjoy a cheaper pint from today [GETTY]

“George Osborne is again the toast of Britain's brewers, pubs and pubgoers”

British Beer and Pub Association

"It also shows that the Government has understood our case, that taxes on British beer had become far too high, and action was long overdue.

"I hope this becomes a trend in future budgets for this British-made, lower-strength drink."

There was more good news for drivers, as a planned price increase in September has been scrapped.

However, Mr Osborne resisted calls to cut the duty – much to the disappointment of campaign and motoring groups.The AA said the freeze on duty, for a fourth year, was "very welcome relief for UK drivers".

But AA president Edmund King added: "The freeze still leaves the squeeze on families and businesses that rely on four wheels to function and prosper."

MIXED FORTUNE: Scottish Whisky prices have been frozen but cigarette duty has been raised again [GETTY]

Professor Stephen Glaister, director of the RAC Foundation, added: "The good news is that fuel duty has now been frozen since March 2011.

"The bad news is that the UK's 37 million drivers still pay the highest proportion of petrol and diesel tax in Europe...

"For those offered low paid employment there is a real question mark over whether they can afford to take it up with travel still so expensive."

Bingo Halls also saw a welcome boost as Bingo duty HALVED to ten per cent.

However, there was once again bad news for smokers, with tobacco duty rising to two percent above inflation – while duty on fixed-odds betting terminals increased to 25 per cent.

The Tobacco Retailers' Alliance (TRA) said the two percent tobacco increase played into the hands of smugglers.

HOUSE! Bingo duty has been halved to 10% [GETTY]

TRA spokeswoman Debbie Corris said: "With the Chancellor's announcement, smugglers will now make even more profit, encouraging more of them to ply their illegal trade in communities across the UK, selling to customers no matter what their age.

"This in turn will mean lost sales for legitimate retailers like myself."

However, campaigners think the rise hasn't gone far enough, describing the two percent increase as "ridiculous".

British Lung Foundation chief executive Dr Penny Woods said: "By not heeding the recommendations of health experts to increase tobacco taxation by five per cent above inflation, the Chancellor has missed a great opportunity to help put an end to this ridiculous situation in which a pack of cigarettes today costs less in real terms than it did in the 1960s."

RESPONSE: Ed Miliband said people were worse off under the Tories [PA]

An extra £200m has been made available for councils to fix numerous potholes that have popped up after another bad winter and the personal allowance threshold has been raised by £500 – meaning workers won't have to pay a penny on tax for the first £10,500 they earn.

Mr Osborne told MPs: "The economy is continuing to recover and recovering faster than forecast."

Labour leader Ed Miliband said that the country was "worse off under the Tories".

He added: "We already know the answer to the question millions of people will be asking in 2015 - are they better off now than they were five years ago?

"The answer is no. Worse off, much worse off, worse off under the Tories."